The Malta Union of Teachers is in disagreement with amendments being proposed by the government on university licences whic, the union said, which undermine longstanding beacons of education.

In a statement, the MUT said it has been following intently the ongoing debate on the recent legal notice 150/2015. 

While saying it is in favour of the opening up of new universitues, the MUT said it is first of all concerned that the enacted amendments will change the definition of a University to such an extent that accrediting entities will not be in a position to ensure that license holders will be operating a University according to established standards. The Union feels that the way this LN is positioned gives a lot of weight to commercial and economic potential to the detriment of academic and educational standards.

It is an international norm that an entity awarded the title of University should (a) be multidisciplinary with different faculties, (b) have taught programmes, (c) have a continuous strong research element, and (d) support an element of outreach in the host community. The proposed amendments, however, mean that eligible entities in Malta will now be able to ignore three out of these four criteria and are free to adopt just one of these elements. In reality, this means that Malta will potentially open its doors to commercial entities without any substantial educational function to operate as a University. Another implication is that Malta will operate a definition of University which is different from the established norm in most countries thereby putting the country’s academic reputation at risk. Moreover, the Union doubts whether Malta has currently enough resources to monitor what goes on inside all higher and further education institutions.

The MUT is all the more concerned that applications for University status will also be considered by the commission “if the application is in the national interest”. The Union believes that this is completely unacceptable because it means that academic licences might be awarded on an ad hoc basis regardless of international academic standards.

In conclusion, the Union would have expected a proper study to be conducted to make sure that the University of Malta, MCAST and ITS do not lose foreign students to private institutions, especially if these are primarily of a commercial nature. If this happens, local educational institutions with long traditions and good repute would end up with financial difficulties that could make it impossible for them to operate successfully.

In reply, the ministry of education refutes the remarks by the MUT that educational standards are in anyway being lowered by LN 150/2015. The accreditation and licensing process run by the National Commission for Further and Higher Education (NCFHE) has remained largely unchanged. In fact in the last few months, the Government has regularised the high standards we have achieved so far and further strengthened them.

New regulations now ensure that educational institutions operating in the University sector in Malta and Gozo must have the required fully qualified academic staff and they must go through a rigorous quality assurance process of their programmes before they are allowed to operate. Their students and academics must undertake research. Applying in the national interest does not exonerate educational institutions from the obligations to offer good quality courses, research programmes and good academic governance.

International trends show that new universities are being established with specialised programmes in one or a few areas. In fact, LN150/2015 defines universities in the context of these new global realities. The quality and standards of a university do not depend on the amount of programmes and faculties but in the way these programmes are run and delivered.

The ministry for education said it is committed to enhancing Malta’s reputation as a top education destination in the same way that enhanced its credentials for the teaching of English as a Foreign Language sector.

To strengthen our country’s educational standards, the Ministry for Education has just signed an agreement with the University of Cambridge to improve proficiency of English in the country.

With an ever growing market of 4.5 million students studying in overseas campuses around the world, there are enough students for established and new universities in Malta and Gozo to attract a few thousand students to Malta.